Seattle Seahawks draft pick and cornerback Julian Neal saved himself some money, thanks to his presience.
After being selected by the Seahawks in the third round as the 99th overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft, Neal shared an incredible story about the universe seemingly pointing him to his destination beforehand.
Apparently, he was supposed to have hats of all 32 teams before the draft so he could choose one when his name was called. But he never received them. Instead, he asked his aunt to buy him a hat, specifically a Seahawks cap.
“Hey, guess what? This was the only hat I bought,” an incredulous Neal said. “This was, literally, the only hat I bought. Some company failed to send me all 32 hats. I wasn’t going to buy all 32. I said, ‘Auntie, go get me a Seahawks hat.’ I promise you, it’s crazy that happened, bro.”
AWESOME: New #Seahawks CB Julian Neal said the company responsible for sending all 32 NFL hats messed up, and didn’t send any.
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) April 25, 2026
So he asked his auntie to go buy only ONE hat instead — a Seahawks hat — and then Seattle drafted him!
You couldn’t write this in a Hollywood script!… pic.twitter.com/h1o9unud2Q
Neal must have felt that the Seahawks would target a defensive back after Seattle parted ways with Riq Woolen in the offseason. But choosing to bring a specific hat with him during the draft still required considerable confidence. For one, he wasn’t Seattle’s first pick to address its secondary needs, as the Seahawks took TCU Horned Frogs safety Bud Clark in the second round.
Had another team selected Neal, he would have had no use for the Seahawks hat.
Either way, he would have an amusing story about it.
Neal spent four years with the Fresno State Bulldogs in college before transferring to the Arkansas Razorbacks. In 2025, he had 2 interceptions, 10 passes defended and 55 combined tackles in 12 games for the Razorbacks.
